De Omnibus Dubitandum Est.

Bishop Thomas Paprocki has described Cardinal Robert McElroy's theology as heretical. Is that accusation justified? In a landmark address to the Outreach Conference with Fr James Martin, Cardinal McElroy presents a vision of mercy, doctrine and human sexuality that many believe represents a decisive departure from Catholic tradition. Rev. Dr Stephen Morgan subjects McElroy's arguments to careful theological scrutiny, drawing on Newman, Benedict XVI and Veritatis Splendor to expose the fault lines in his reasoning and to ask whether what is being proposed is genuine development or something far more radical? Read Morgan's outstanding piece in full at Catholic Unscripted

If you have read my recent Catholic Herald article , you will probably be aware of the bishop of Tyler Texas, Bishop Joseph Strickland. As I mentioned, on a recent trip to the USA two things became increasingly obvious. Regular Americans of all stamps are frustrated that bishops seem to be endorsing error and failing to stand up for the faith. Bishop Strickland is considered the most vocal episcopal voice for the faith in the USA. This has led to him being dubbed "America's Bishop", a title last applied to the Venerable Fulton J. Sheen. Bishop Strickland recognises the consternation American Catholics feel when their bishops endorse Father James Martin SJ, whose voice grows louder and louder, especially on social media, where he is regularly attacking the deposit of faith, calling Scripture into question , this from just a couple of days ago: ...And this is not a one off, he does it all the time, here is one from last year: I wrote a blog about that incident here , asking...

  Bishop Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas, is a clear voice for the Catholic faith. Perhaps one might say the clearest voice , at least currently. His outspokenness and clarity has not, as one might hope, brought him universal acclaim. Mike Lewis at the popesplaining site  Where Peter Is , for example, has called for him to be removed after the brave bishop called out Pope Francis' constant undermining of the deposit of faith and suggested that we should follow Jesus - an idea which should not really be that radical, but under this papacy, sadly, is. Of course, this tact from Mr. Lewis just serves to show how poor his understanding of the episcopacy actually is. When I visited Chicago in April , Bishop Strickland's name was heard often and loudly. It was at the top of the list of "good bishops" from clergy and laity alike. I found this very heartening: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they sha...

Jesus met with all kinds of sinners. He met with them to call them to repentance.  We know this, it is what the Church exists for. I have discussed here, previously , how I can recognise the way in which the pope, perhaps, considers meeting public sinners an imitation of Christ. He could well consider it the very work of mercy and charity to reach out to the marginalised and despised. The key and obvious difference, it seems to me, is that where Christ offered sinners who knew their sinful position the hope of salvation through repentance, the pope seems to never require any renunciation of the often open and blatant attacks proffered by those he meets. Instead he seems to promote them and their ideas. Quite literally in some cases !  Who could forget the  numerous scandalous reports from Eugene Scalfari , a nonagenarian Atheist Italian reporter? there's his friendship with Emma Bonino , Italian abortionist.More moral relativism from the Argentine Pontiff! On March 21, 20...

In 1986, aware that some within the Church were presenting an overly positive view of homosexuality, the CDF issued a letter to bishops on the pastoral care of homosexual persons. It made extremely clear what the Church has consistently taught on this issue and why: "The issue of homosexuality and the moral evaluation of homosexual acts have increasingly become a matter of public debate, even in Catholic circles. Since this debate often advances arguments and makes assertions inconsistent with the teaching of the Catholic Church, it is quite rightly a cause for concern to all engaged in the pastoral ministry, and this Congregation has judged it to be of sufficiently grave and widespread importance to address to the Bishops of the Catholic Church this Letter on the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons. 2. Naturally, an exhaustive treatment of this complex issue cannot be attempted here, but we will focus our reflection within the distinctive context of the Catholic moral perspectiv...

One of the things I have really noticed lately is that, as the hierarchy melts into meaningless apathy, terrified of Francis, the Dictator Pope, lay people are stepping into the void. They are standing up for the faith that they love and they are speaking out, in place of the bishops, against the struggles that we face as Catholic families every day. People like One of Nine  Robert Nugent Brian Holdsworth Katherine Bennett Tim Gordon And, probably my current favourite; Trent Horn . All these producers are providing an invaluable service by creating and contributing to a vibrant online Catholic community, sharing the beauty of truth and discussing issues that are interesting and appropriate to Catholics.  Sadly we see our bishops addressing these issues less and less, and crapping on about climate change and illegal immigration more and more. A MASSIVE issue facing Catholic families is the LGBTQI+ political ideology which is an avalanche of wrong-headed madness being foisted on...

What on earth is the Pope doing? The Pope who has no time to see the Emeritus bishop of Hong Kong ,  the Pope who refused to meet with the senior cardinals who presented him with several dubia over his teaching , has lots of time to  write a personal letter in support of Fr James Martin SJ’s ministry to LGBTQ+ Catholics, thanking the prominent and frequently controversial Jesuit for his work and encouraging him to continue his efforts. The very BEST one could say is that Fr. Martin is clearly deeply divisive and controversial. I have posted about him numerous times, the last time just a few days ago . “I want to thank you for your pastoral zeal and your ability to be close to people,” Pope France wrote in the letter, “with the closeness that Jesus had, and which reflects the closeness of God.” Hand-written in Spanish, the letter was a reply to one the pope had received from a young relative of Fr Martin ahead of the correspondent’s Confirmation and reminding him of an LGBTQ ...

Trent Horn is an adjunct professor of apologetics at Holy Apostles College and staff apologist at Catholic Answers. He has an academic, thorough style which avoids scoring easy points or driving traffic by focusing on scandal. This can make some of his YouTube videos quite difficult to watch unless you relish facts and dislike salacious or hyperbolic reporting. This is part of the reason I was surprised to see Trent doing a full video on Father James Martin . You know Father James, he's this guy: This is important. Father James Martin's reach and popularity is enormous. He has 300,000 Twitter followers, far more than any other American bishop or priest or lay Catholic commentator, and he Tweets a lot. Why does he have so many followers? Well because he has exposure born of the fact that he is a priest who speaks against the Church and Church teaching. He doesn't do this explicitly or angrily. He does it subtly and gently and in the name of love. But he IS doing it and he i...

  If you care about the Church, you're probably struggling a bit at the moment for lots of reasons. With Jorge Bergoglio at the reins as Pope Francis, it feels like a mad old parish priest well past his sell by date is running things. He doesn't care about theology, canon law, doctrine, or the effect his decisions have. He supports and promotes the UN, which has at its' heart a dubious strategy of population control . Most of his teaching seems troublingly pantheistic , and occasionally contains more than a feint whiff of direct opposition to Catholic teaching, and I quote: Today we hear the voice of creation admonishing us to return to our rightful place in the natural created order – to remember that we are part of this interconnected web of life, not its masters. #SeasonOfCreation — Pope Francis (@Pontifex) September 3, 2020 However perhaps the most troubling dimension to Jose Bergoglio's reign as the supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church is his consistent associati...

In this post the other day I mentioned Fr James Martin's most recent scandalous Tweet. I had to wonder if this crossed a bit of a line - there was certainly a strong reaction on social media. But Martin has been doing this for a long while, and he doesn't just push it with LGBTQ issues, he challenges lots of Catholic ideas: His problematic ramblings often attract brother priests to remonstrate: Jim doesn't care. They're all just haters. And he has the Vatican backing him ! And anyway, those who argue with him are all gays anyway! . @jamesmartinsj says cardinals & bishops support his LGBT agenda Says critics are "uncomfortable" with their sexuality. TYPICAL GAY TACTIC pic.twitter.com/QqFyZOcpZr — Nick Donnelly (@ProtecttheFaith) August 1, 2017 Anyway I wonder if his "gay "marriage"" Tweet prompted Archbishop Chaput to write this warning to the faithful about Martin's lies? Whether it was or not, i...